Centrifugal pump



Feb. 19, 1935. QM` vEAcH CENTRIFUGAL PUM? F'lled May 1'?, 1930 A TTORNE Y.

Patented Feb. 19, 1935 UNITED STATES CENTI tIFUcrAL PUMP Charles M. Veach',r`Wells 'I Jannery, Pa. Applicationmw 1 7, 1930, serial No. 453,152

, '5 claims. (oi.' 10e- 103) Centrifugal pumps that have a non-positive output have a very wide range of utilization. They are used Afor lifting liquids, for, ejecting liquids from a nozzle, into the atmosphere and 5 Sometimes against pressure, and very ,particularly Vfor liquid transmission'devices, and also for many other purposes to which the variable pressure produced by varying the rotors speedmakes them'peculiarlyapplicable. y pump, which may beV used particularly well as an element of transmission devices, has apressure chamber in which a large portion of the liquid handledby the pump is put under apressure in anannular chamber circumferably eX- tendi'ng around the rotor by the rotors revoluf tion, but itself remains nonrctating. It is `under varying pressure in proportion to the rapidity of the rotors'revolution and to the resistance to the liquids passage fromthe pressure chamber. If the outlet for the liquid held under pressure is closed, the rotors turning is not stopped, and ap parently is not interfered with substantially. The liquid inthe pressure chamber remains latrest, andthe liquid in the rotor remains in it, and, where the'rotor is slightly retarded by friction, there is. no shock overfthe closing of the outlet from the pressure chamber, or its partial 'clos-l ing. This pressure in the pressurechamber varies alsowith thefreedom with which itis Vallowed to .pass therefrom. Two main factors, therefore, exist governing largely the. amountof `pressure in the pressure chamber and in the conductor leading from it, viz the rapidity of the rotors'revolution, and the freedom of the liquids passage from the pressure chamber. This latter is particularly important when the pump -is used with `a posi tively acting liquid drivenrotary motor, the Yfluid pressure that causes the rotation of which will be increased if this rotary motor is slowed down by -an increased load, and therefore an increased load means an automatically increased power in the driven Imotor at a lesser speed of the motor, a result very .useful in 'automobile transmission devices; V i 'L The powerof the driven motor can .also be .increased, by increasingjthe speedV of Vthe rotor of the pump, ,without 'diminishingthe motors speed; The speed of the vehicle therefore can be completely regulated by a` control ofthe supply. of

combustible material to the engine.,`

Describing nowthe best form of my device of which I am at presentaware,

Fig. 1 is a sideelevation ofthe pump with the plate vnearer the observer removed, showing the positions of -the parts beneath it; Fig. 2 is a view partly in section on the line l2-2of Fig. 1. In'

this view 'theretort-and fits driving elements are not in section. Fig.` 3 is a view fully in section on the same line.

60 VThe device has'a chamber A, tocontain the 'ably secured, as by brazing, to the ring 12.

liquid under pressure. chamber is formed i along the circumference of the casing 1, `which latter may be formed of` any convenient form of side plates or castings 2,. with a rim, 3 to which the side plates 2 maybe bolted bybolts, or otherwise suitably secured. The chamber, A, lies'adjacent tothe rim 3, and between the side plates .2,' 2.V The boundary of the chamber fA, toward the axis'of the pump a perforated screen 5. .This ,screen extends between the 'sides'of thefpumnand, in practice, is annular. `It may lonmay not bacoaxial withfthe rotor, land may or may not be equally spaced from the rim, atA allpointsin its circumference. These limitationsof position are not necessary,'since revolution of the uid in the chamber A is' not desired. V*This screen 5, 'serves to "separate the chamber A from a spaceB, be tween the circumference 7, of the rotor and the screen 5, in which space the liquidrotates;V at a rate a little less than the rate of rotation of the rotor. The screen is, in practice,l a`ring1of thin metal, pierced with a large number of small perforations. .space B, between` the circumference of the vrotor .and the screen is narrow, as will be explained below.` All the parts above mentioned, except the rotor are stationary in practice, as there is no advantage in having them rotate in the present formA ofA my device.

The axis of revolutionof the rotor may be horizontal orY vertical. I have shown it as vertical with the correspondingposition ofthe other parts of thedevice, but my invention is not limited to a rotor, orV the other vpump parts so placed.v

The rotor 6 is constructedas followsJ--A series of radially extending conductors 9 are mount'- ed' on a rotating hub 14, and have outlet mouths a, a, a, adjacent to the screen`5; vA narrow space is left between themand the inner surface of the screen 5 (the space B). These conductors 9, may be in the form of ordinary cylindrical pipes, as shown in the illustrations. The'circumference of the rotor is closed between the mouths a, so that the friction caused by its contact with the liquid in the space B, vis minimized. Y The rotor vhas aring 12,Y that is'circular and closes the spaces betweenthe mouths a, a, or, a, forming a continuous surface.` The sides 13, of therotor are flat, andI may beformed of discs of sheet material suit- This construction of the rotor is avery advantageous one, for the greater part of `its weightY is substan tially that of theY water contained in the conductors 9. The water so contained `doesnot press outwardagainst any part of the rotor. The circumferential Vring 12 closingthe spaces .between the outlets a, a, a, of the conductors Sand the side pieces being brazed to it keep the watergout of the vspaces between the 'conductors 9, so that the rotor having the empty spaces is extraordinarily light for its size. The hub 14, rotates on leaving all the rest of the space between the sides- 13 and the ring 12 empty except for the air contained in it. The rotor is spaced so that the friction retarding its revolution will Vbe minimized,

which with oil will not require that the side wall i ofthe motor be more than an inch fromtheinside of the wall of the casing 1.

Thedriving mechanism for the rotor is placed, in practice, inside rof the casing. In practice, I use a driving gear 17, 'thev shaft 18 of which passes through a gland l9that is mounted on the side 2 of the casing and may have an venlarged bearing 28 that bears on 'this'side v'I'he driven gear 20 is mounted on Vthe rotor, Vin practice, on a hub 14.' 'I'he rotor preferably revolves cna stationary pipe 1,5 which has apertures such as the holes 23 that allow the liquid to pass from the pipe l5 into the'conductors 9.- This liquid is prevented from entering the space'D, by suitably'closing the space between the mouths .that open into` the space around the pipe15. ,i l Y An outlet 25' is provided for the exit 'of the liquid from the chamber A. The va1ve26 may be placed in it when the regulation or control ofthe outiiow of liquid from the pump is desired. `The gears 17 and 20 run inthe liquid. If this liquid isA oil, as it would usually be if the pump was part of a transmission system, the lubrication of these parts and of the bearingsof the rotor is assured. Y

'The action of the pump is differentiated from other 'centrifugal pumps in several ways. The liquidin the chamber A, does not rotate substantially,` but remainsalways under aheavy pressure which is exerted radially by the liquid in the rotor, the pipes and the screen co-operating to produce this result. 'Ihe liquid in the space B rotates, but its volume is small. The pump runs best entirely full 'of liquid, vbut it `will operate when partly lled with butlittle diminished power. The pressureY in the chamber A is a function of two variable quantities, the pressure of the liquid in' itrfrom the liquid in the rotor, and, to anextent, from the pressure of the liquid in the spaceV B and the freedom with which the liquid can pass through the outlet 25. The precise fluctuation of the liquid through the perforations in the screen is not readily determinable.Y In practice, a Steady outward pressure is maintained in the chamber A. The outflow from this chamber has all the qualitiesof a stream having aiixed and very Vhigh head, asit'is always possible to drive the rotor at a speed suicient to produce this resultif the proper proportional number of perforations of the Vpartsis maintained. The outlet may be entirely free, which will be the case ordinarily when the problem is simplyto raise water, or itwmay lead into a motor which'can be piston or turbine. An increasedV load on the motor willslow it down, checkingrthe flow fromthe outlet from the chamber yA and therefore increasingl the pressure in it.

I have found that no appreciablyvr greater load is put onV theengine driving the rotoiywhich lat'- ter-continues at constant speed, so thatY the en-V gines'speed remains constant when a resistance is encountered by the liquid pressing out from ,an inner wall `of the stationary chamben the pump. This fact makes the pump particularly ,Y

effective in driving any motor that varies in speed,f and at lower speeds needs'a greater liquid pres sure to insurewits operation. `This gives automatically a greater drivingA power to the motor" driven by my pump at the motors lowerspeeds.

Ido not limit myself to the particularmechanical pump structure described above. yThere vare manyways in which a chamber pump containing a Volumeof lliquid that is not substantially rotating, held under pressure by the revolution of a.VV

rotor may be constructed so far'f as the casing,V

liquid feed and even'the pressure chamber may be concerned, and these, provided they fall within Y a fair Vconstruction of mynclaims Y:are incliuiedin my invention. K

I claim 1. 1n a.v centrifuga pmp-havinga sttiaiy pressure chamber with a perforated ring between whichv and the inner face Yof the outerfwalls of the chamber a quantity of thel liquid is heldsube stantially without rotation and* under heavy presiV i y sure, the rotor comprising inlcombinaticn aserie's'Y of radial pipes extendingfrom 'a central,'intak'e,4

`a circumferential ring enclosing' the circumfer. ence of the rotor except at the mouthpf the pipe and flat side pieces at each side of saidrrotor brazed to the edges of the circumferential ring thereby forming between Vthe side pieces .and the',

circumferential ring enclosed'airs'pacesY 2. A centrifugal pump comprising 2a stationary pressure chamber, with a" perforated ring between which and the inner face ofthe outer. circumfer-V ential'walls of said chamberaqu'antityfof the liquid is held substantially withoutrotation under heavy pressure, and a rotor :comprising in combination, a centralinlet, a hub, a seriesuof radially arranged pipes leading from the central inlet to the circumference of the rotor, said rotor having "a side Vand Ycircumferential closure, enclosing andfclosing air tight the space included in the rotor between thefexteriormof'the radial .f pipes, the hub and said closuresvof 4the rotor, but

not closing the outer ends fof Vsai'd'radial pipes whereby all'portions o f the rotor outside the hub except said pipes are closedagainst the entrance y of water.

3. In a centrifugal pumpfhavinga'stationary` pressure chamber with aperforated ring between which and the inner face ofthe outer wallsY of the chamber, a quantity of the liquid is held substantially without rotation and under heavy pressure, a rotor comprising in' combination a circumferential ring a series of radial pipes extending from an intake, to the circumferential ring enclos-V ingthe circumference, flat side pieces at'each side I of said rotor' secured air tight'togthe` circumferf.

ential ring therebyforming between the side pieces and the circumferentialring enclosed air. spaces. i

nation witha driving mechanism comprising a hub von which saidrotorsfsidepieces'and radial pipesV are i mounted and which' has bearings on which it rotates, and a pair of gearwheels one mounted on said hub andthe'otheifm'orinixedon,V 

